Rebekah stood in the doorway and watched as Fogarty walked across the yard and into the night. Without warning, Thomas appeared at her side.
“Mr. Fogarty was real nice and helpful,” Thomas said. “I did not figure he would want to feel left out or helpless, so I let him go on and tidy up down here while I watched Joseph upstairs. That way, we were both helping while you rested.”
Rebekah draped her arm around her little brudder’s shoulder. “Is that the way of it then?”
“Yes. Mostly. I suppose I accidentally rested, too.” Thomas stared thoughtfully into the dark. “So, he also went on and fed the horse and cow and chickens, after he put the door back on. He said it was right genuine what you did to get Joseph moved inside.”
“Genuine?” Rebekah smiled. “Or ingenious?”
Thomas flashed her his trademark gap-toothed smile. “Yeah, that’s it. The second one.”
“Well, it sounds like he was very lucky that he was here to help you.” Rebekah gave his shoulders a squeeze. “I know that you are a blessing to me every day.”
“Really, schweister?”
“Jah. Really.”
Thomas sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. “That really makes what I am about to have to tell you so much easier.”
Rebekah froze, the smile on her face would have fallen, but instead, it stayed plastered there, while she stared into the darkness and waited for the rest of Thomas’s spiel. “Oh?”
He reached into his front pocket and pulled out a tiny baby skunk.
Rebekah leaped backward, as much as her stiff muscles would allow. “Thomas…”
“Before you say no,” Thomas began, reaching into the other pocket. “There is one more.”
From that pocket, he produced another black and white baby, however, this one wore a mask.
“Thomas, really!” Rebekah scolded. “A baby skunk and a baby raccoon?”
“Sissy, it might be best to keep your voice down, just in case. I do not rightly know how old baby skunks are when they start spraying.”
Rebekah closed her eyes and tried to ignore her beating heart, which was beating faster and faster with each animal Thomas produced from his pocket. She thought back on the strange myriad of animals whose lives had been taken by the hailstorm, and then she knew at once where these infant babies had come from.
They were orphaned in the storm. She had seen their parents dead in the ice.
She sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “If you tell me you have a snake in there, I may just scream.”
Thomas’s face lit up. “Sissy, you are so smart! How did you know I caught a snake, too?”
Rebekah opened her mouth, but before any sound could come out, Thomas continued. “I went ahead and let him go, though. Little snakes are hard to keep ahold of and, really, I do not think they need that much parenting. And you are a good parent, Sissy. That is how come I knew I had to bring these babies home to you.”
“Bring them home?”
“Well,” Thomas continued, holding out the wad of baby raccoon to her, which she gingerly accepted, “they mostly were already home. They were under the porch. They were crying up a terrible storm, but you likely did not hear them since you were getting Joseph moved in and all.”
Something panged in Rebekah’s heart. Here she was, a sick fater, a sick mann, and mater to her sohn and mostly mater to her little brudder. She glanced down at the innocent little creature in her hand. It was curled up with its shiny black nose tucked between nimble little paws. She sighed. “Thomas.”
“Please Sissy, do not say no…”
“Thomas,” she said again, quieter this time. “Did you have these babies in your pocket the entire time you were sitting with Joseph?”
He nodded.
“And that is why you were so quiet and resting so soundly?”
“I expect so. I did not want to wake any of them up, you know.”
A tiny flicker of a smile crossed Rebekah’s lips. Before she could help it, the flicker grew into a full, fledged grin that barely contained a chuckle. “Oh Thomas, do you have any idea at all how hard the coming days and weeks will be?”
“Nope. I can sure say I do not really know anything about any of this.” He ran his thumb down the length of the sleeping baby skunk.
She stroked the tiny raccoon. It made a strange noise, like a kitten’s purr, only somehow cuter. “I suppose I do not know either. I only know it will be hard.”
“But I know what is right and what is wrong,” Thomas said. “And it felt wrong to leave orphaned babies to die. It was not their fault that their parents died in that ice storm.”
Thomas hung his head. “But if you think it is best to put them back under the porch…”
Rebekah clucked at the tiny raccoon, who responded by extending all her little fingers in a big stretch. “That is not what I was going to say. I was going to say it was incredibly good of you to take pity on little orphaned creatures. After all, God made them, too, did He not?”
“He did. He is really good at making cute young things, isn’t he, Sissy?”
She nodded. “Since these coming weeks are going to be hard anyway, a couple of extra little souls to take care of should not be impossible. Especially since they came to us from you doing the right thing and taking in the most helpless amongst us.”
“Does that mean you are proud of me?”
“Of course, it does.” Rebekah handed the tiny animal back to Thomas. “However, you have to be their primary caregiver. I will help you when I can, just like you will help me when you can. How does that sound?”
“Peachy!”
“Peachy?” Rebekah’s chuckle returned. “Where did you come up with such a silly word?”
“Well,” Thomas began, “Peaches are sweet, and everyone loves peaches. And, they have that neat little fuzz on them when they are just ripe enough to eat. So, I do not know, it made more sense in my mind before I said it.” He tucked his little animals into his pockets.
“I do that sometimes, too.” She reached and pulled shut the door. It did not boast even one little squeak. “So, in addition to taking care of your new little pack, will you be able to help me with Joseph and Dawson?”
“Yes.”
“How about running back to check on Ma and Pa from time to time?”
“I was already planning on doing that. After all, I am fast.”
“Of course. And you have all of your secret trails.”
“Yes, I do. And I cannot wait to introduce Ma to Blackie and Whitely.”
Rebekah wrinkled her nose as she steered them both toward the stairs. “Oh Thomas, surely you can come up with better names than that. How about we think on it and find just the perfect names for them.”
“How about Salt and Pepper?” Thomas looked thoughtful. “Or Stinky and Slinky?”
Together they trudged up the stairs where both Graber men lay sleeping, one the righteous sleep of babes and the other the most unnatural and unnerving sleep of a horse-kick coma.
***
Rebekah got Thomas and his pack of baby animals tucked up safely and soundly into his room. Part of Thomas’s agreeing to support his big schweister in her marrying Joseph Graber was that when she moved out of the Stoll family home and into her own, he would have a room of his own at her house, too. After all, she was his favorite person, and he made no qualms about hiding how much he loved and admired his schweister. And the feeling was mutual.
“Remember,” Rebekah warned as she pulled the door closed, “those little bopplins of yours might be sleeping now, but they are creatures of the night. So, consider yourself warned.”
“Sissy?”
“Yes?”
“Would you mind putting a little box with sand in here with me? I mean, in case they have to, you know…”
“I suppose it is never too early to start toilet training.” Rebekah giggled. “I will be right back.”
Rebekah pulled the door closed and stretched her back. Everything ached from her arms to her legs, but most especially, her back. Her upper back, her lower back, both places hurt with equal horror. She could almost hear her bed calling her name as she limped past the partially opened door.
Through the crack, she could see Joseph lying there, so helpless and sick. She chewed her bottom lip and made her way down the stairs. “God, I never dreamed I would find myself in a situation such as this. I want to remember Joseph in my prayers tonight, as well as my fater, Samuel.” Her heart twisted in her chest, and she climbed down the stairs. “I feel so guilty for not praying more for my sweet, sick fater. Forgive me, God, please.”
Finally, she reached the bottom. Her breath came quickly, and her head spun. “Just get a litter box, Rebekah,” she said out loud. “Then you can get to bed.”
She stumbled over to the couch.
Perhaps I can rest, just for a moment.
Rebekah sunk onto the couch, helpless to her exhaustion.
I have so many people upstairs who need me, but I am worthless if I am exhausted. I will close my eyes, just for a moment.
Rebekah awoke with a start and bolted upright. A chill, which had apparently been settling in her bones since she’d been on the couch, chattered her teeth and brought a shiver to her hands and feet. There was a noise, something so quiet yet so out of place, that it roused her from her inadvertent slumber.
She forced herself to her feet. The sound came again. Quiet. Terrifying. Upstairs. Her legs screamed as the blood rushed back to them as she hurried to the stairs in an odd, hobbling gait.
Without hesitation, she dashed up the stairs and into her bedroom. She gasped. There on the bed, Joseph, appeared to be having some sort of seizure. His helpless body jerked, and he had somehow gotten onto his side. A sickening gurgle came from his throat as his body thrashed again and again.
“Joseph!” The word, so sweet, tore from her throat in a jagged yell.
She was at his side in a moment. He had vomited again, but miraculously he had been on his side when he did so. There was no trace of vomit on the bed, only the floor.
The reality of the situation struck Rebekah like a steam engine. Had he vomited while unconscious and on his back, he would have suffocated.
Her mind flashed back to an old Amish midwife who served as the village physician whenever somebody was sick or injured. A young boy had fallen from the roof during a barn raising, landing on his neck and head. At first, everyone thought he was fine, since he jumped right up, albeit a bit embarrassed, and continued to help with the barn raising.
It was not until he was missed after lunch when he was found, behind his home, presumably having snuck off to take a nap. However, no one would ever know for sure, because he had vomited while on his back and had been dead for some time. The old midwife had muttered to herself, if only he had been on his side, he may have had a chance.
That had stuck with Rebekah through the years, in the recesses of her mind, and though she had not understood the severity at the time as she was just a young girl, she certainly understood it now.
The cold chill returned with a bone-shaking vengeance. Rebekah! How lucky are you that he was able to get himself onto his side! She shook her head. No, not lucky. Never lucky. Blessed. That was God’s own work.
Fogarty had apparently stocked her bedroom with a stack of fresh towels, a blessing she had not noticed before.
She grabbed one off the top and began to clean the vomit from the floor. She was shocked to find that Joseph’s eyes were wide and staring.
Rebekah, she mentally admonished herself. He woke up and you were not here!
“Joseph!” She moved across his field of gaze. His eyes tracked her movements.
Thank you, God!
“Joseph, can you speak?” Rebekah folded the towel and wiped her husband’s face with a clean bit of the towel.
Words, jumbled and unclear, spilled from his mouth.
Rebekah smiled. “Look how much better you are doing! Thank God you are awake.”
Still, something in his eyes did not look right, though Rebekah could not place what was off.
“Joseph, if you can understand me, please blink your eyes.”
Rebekah stared intently as Joseph peered back at her. After a moment, he blinked his eyes twice.
She found his hand and squeezed it. “Ach lieb you, Joseph. Thank you for braving that storm to keep Pepper safe. She is fine. So are Buttermilk and the chickens. Dawson is fine, Thomas is fine, and so am I. And now, I can rest well, knowing that you have woken up, too.”
He blinked deliberate blinks at her.
“You might notice that your legs are sore. You got hurt by a piece of a wagon wheel, but you are going to be just fine.”
He squeezed her hand.
Warm tears of joy filled her eyes and rushed down her cheeks, but she did not care. “Thank heaven that you woke up, Joseph. You have been asleep for quite some time. Most of the day in fact,” she said. Her heart leaped as she conversed with her husband, something the feared she would never have the luxury to do again. Every word out of her mouth and into his understanding ears was cause for celebration.
Joseph squeezed her hand again.
She quit rambling and stared at her husband. “Are you trying to tell me something, Joseph?”
Another squeeze.
Rebekah wiped her eyes with her free hand. “Let me see, how can you tell me what you need?” As Rebekah tried to come up with some way for the pair of them to communicate, she saw it. A darkening ring on the sheets around Joseph’s middle.
Rebekah patted his hand and tucked it up on the bed. “I see what you were trying to tell me. It makes sense now.” With her back to her husband, she drew in an exhausted breath.
Please, God. Give me the physical and mental strength to be able to do this, to take care of my husband. My family.
Outside, the sun was threatening to peek over the horizon. Her day was about to begin, yet she felt she had gotten absolutely no rest. From the next room, Dawson began to chirp his warning cry.
“Sissy…” A sleepy voice came from the doorway. “Did you forget to bring me a litter box? I need to clean up after the little babies.”
I am going to need you Fater God, in a way I never have before. Please, do not abandon me now, in yet another hour of my need, for this one may be the most trying hour I have ever known.